18800.
(a) The Strategic Growth Council, in consultation with the State Department of Public Health, State Department of Education, Department of Food and Agriculture, State Department of Social Services, Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, and Labor and Workforce Development Agency shall appoint and convene the End Hunger in California Master Plan Task Force to, in further consultation with the stakeholders listed in subdivision (b), make recommendations for future comprehensive strategies aimed at addressing access to healthy and culturally relevant food for all Californians. (b) The task force shall be composed of up to 40 members and shall include all of the following:
(1) Up to two representatives from the State Department of Public Health.
(2) Up to two representatives from the State Department of Education.
(3) Up to two representatives from the Department of Food and Agriculture, including from the Office of Farm to Fork.
(4) Up to two representatives from the State Department of Social Services.
(5) Up to two representatives from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development.
(6) Up to two representatives from the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, including from the California Workforce Development Board.
(7) At least four representatives of labor
organizations or community-based organizations representing workers in food-related areas, including, but not limited to, agriculture, food packaging, and grocery.
(8) At least four representatives of state and local community nonprofit organizations that work with and advocate for food access, including individuals with expertise in urban agriculture, farmers markets, food recovery, school food, and regional food systems.
(9) At least three representatives from antihunger organizations.
(10) At least one representative with expertise in issues affecting socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers as defined in Section 512 of the Food and Agricultural Code.
(11) At least one representative from a small or medium-sized certified organic farm according to
the federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. Sec. 6501 et seq.)
(12) At least two representatives of Native American, tribal, or indigenous groups.
(13) Up to one grocery investor.
(14) Up to two grocery retailers representing an independent grocery store and a chain grocery store.
(15) Up to one representative with familiarity in real estate and land procurement related to the food sector.
(16) Up to two representatives with expertise in food transportation and warehousing.
(17) Up to two researchers or economists with subject matter expertise in capital markets, market consolidation, or food access.
(18) Up to one representative representing an urban county or city.
(19) Up to one representative representing a suburban county or city.
(20) Up to one representative representing a rural county or city.
(c) (1) To ensure equitable participation, the Strategic Growth Council may provide members of the task force with a reasonable per diem allowance as specified in Section 11564.5 of the Government Code, or at a higher rate that may be established by the council, for each day of attendance at a noticed meeting of the task force. The council may also reimburse members of the task force for actual and necessary travel expenses incurred in connection with their official duties.
(2) Implementation of this subdivision shall be subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for the purpose of this subdivision.
(d) The task force shall meet at least quarterly and may form ad hoc advisory committees to learn more about specific issues regarding future comprehensive strategies aimed at addressing access to healthy and culturally relevant food for all Californians.
(e) The Strategic Growth Council, as the convener and chair of the task force, shall serve as the lead agency for developing the End Hunger in California Master Plan and assist the task force in carrying out its duties. The council may use its existing resources to absorb costs for implementing this chapter. Notwithstanding any other law, the council may accept and expend funds from nongovernmental sources for its work with the task force.
(f) The plan shall be distributed to the Legislature no later than January 1, 2026, in accordance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, and be made publicly available on the Strategic Growth Council’s internet website. The plan shall, at a minimum, do all of the following:
(1) Determine if the United States Department of Agriculture’s definition of food deserts is adequate for California, and, if not, develop an appropriate definition for California communities.
(2) Map all food deserts in California.
(3) Identify barriers to bringing retailers and other sellers to specific locations, such as food deserts. These barriers may include, but are not limited to, rural terrain, lack of infrastructure, zoning and other local ordinances, lack of capital, labor
shortages, market consolidation, restrictive covenants, real estate costs, requirements imposed by local ordinances or state law, lack of investments in food hubs and cooperatives, limitations of the public transportation system, transportation costs for consumers, and the expense of distributing food, including storage, warehousing, and fuel and utility costs.
(4) Include a strategy to fully maximize eligible Californians’ participation in, and benefits received through, federal nutrition programs, including, but not limited to, school meals, CalFresh, the federal Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer for Children, the Women, Infants, and Children Program, the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program, and federal commodities programs supporting food banks, including the federal Emergency Food Assistance Program and the federal Commodity Supplemental Food Program, and identify where state programs are needed to fill gaps in the federal food
safety net to ensure food security for every Californian, including tribal communities.
(5) Identify and facilitate stakeholder engagement, including representatives from impacted communities.
(6) Make recommendations for improving food access, including funding alternative food retail models, such as those that support local food producers or those operated or subsidized by for-profit organizations, nonprofit organizations, worker-owned cooperatives, local governments, and the state or tribal governments.
(7) Provide an analysis of state programs currently investing in regional food systems, food access, climate-smart agriculture, and workforce development for food sector workers, including how those programs can better connect gaps in communities served.
(8) Identify yearly goals to ensure California achieves an end to hunger, including goals related to ending food deserts.
(9) Identify possible funding sources that are, or could be, available, such as tax credits or other monetary resources or incentives, including the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169), to motivate the for-profit organizations, nonprofit organizations, worker-owned cooperatives, local governments, state, or tribal governments to locate retail food establishments selling healthy, culturally appropriate, and sustainably grown food in food deserts.
(10) Develop a strategy to ensure that retail food establishments in food deserts return investment to local communities by employing local populations at living wages and benefits and prioritizing procurement from local farmers.
(11) Identify different strategies for combating urban, suburban, and rural food deserts, including strategies for partnership with tribal governments without diminishing tribal sovereignty.